His Touch (14 page)

“Stop,” he said.

“Stop what?”

“You’re worrying. Dissecting. Obsessing. We just had the world’s most incredible sex and as soon as my eyes uncross, we’re gonna do it again.”

“God.”

Reid laughed, shifted so he could kiss one breast, then the other. Oh, hell. Kissing wasn’t enough. He circled one nipple with his tongue. “I like these. A lot.”

She slapped his bare shoulder again. “Come on. They’re covered in stretch marks.”

“Yeah. They are. Still think they’re beautiful. You’re beautiful.”

She shut her eyes. “Okay, Reid. You got me into bed. You don’t have to keep trying.”

He went still and then sat up, regarding her with a slight frown. “Think I’m lying?”

She squirmed under his scrutiny. “No. I think you’re being nice and—”

“Kara, I’m not nice. When I like something, I say so. When I don’t like something—oh, say like the woman I just made love to accusing me of lying—”

“Reid, I never said you were lying. I just think maybe you’re exaggerating and I don’t need that, okay?”

Still scowling at her, he threw up his hands. “Fine. Get your sagging tits and dimpled ass back here.” He slapped her on said ass—it wasn’t the least bit dimpled—and she giggled.

“It’s not dimpled…is it?” She twisted around, tried to get a look at it. He flopped to her bed with a dramatic sigh and tossed his arm across his face.

She lifted a hand, traced the muscles on his abdomen. “I really love this.” She drew her finger along the V of his abdominal muscles.

“Do you?” He flexed, made her giggle. Something else flexed and he reached for his wallet and her belly flipped.

“Again?” She wasn’t sure she could bear it that way again.

He angled his head but his eyes met hers and held. “Oh, yeah. Again. Saggy tits really turn me on.” He rolled on top of her and she smiled.

“Okay, okay! I get it. You like them. I’m glad.”

He kissed her softly and it went on for a long time until she forgot about dimples and stretch marks. “Reid?”

“Mmmm?”

“What the hell is this?” she asked. It wasn’t just sex. And it damn well wasn’t just a Friday night. Damn it, the earth hadn’t just moved, it had changed directions and was still going. She
had
to know he felt it, too.

Abruptly he stopped kissing her and sat up. He took her hand, rubbed his thumb in circles over her palm. “Kara, how many guys have you slept with?”

She tugged her hand free and covered her face. “Reid!”

“Tell me.”

“No!” She flung herself onto the pillow, arm over her face.

“Kara. How many?”

She nibbled on a nail, felt her face burn. And held up two fingers.

“Two? You slept with two guys before me?”

She shook her head.

He peeled the hands away from her face. “Kara. Are you telling me I am only the second guy you’ve ever slept with?”

Her entire body cringed. She flipped over, buried her face in the pillow and waited for the mortification to finish killing her.

But that didn’t happen.

Instead, her cell phone rang. Reid grabbed it before she could move, read the display, and cursed softly. He got up, tossed the phone to her.

“It’s Steve.”

*

He sat on
Kara’s sofa, absently stuffed cold food into his mouth while the rain fell softly outside. In the bedroom, he could hear Kara’s soft voice, but not what she said.

Two men.

Christ, she was practically a virgin and he’d—He shoved the carton away in disgust. And now her ex was calling her on the same night they’d—

He cursed again and got up to pace the length of the living room. Kara’s voice was getting louder—she was pissed off, that was clear. He heard Nadia stir and squeak in her crib so he tip-toed to her room, peeked inside. She was standing up in her crib, blinking owlishly and looking as miserable as he felt.

He stepped over the gate across the door and lifted her up.

“Da,” she said and wrapped her tiny fist around his heart.

“Not—” He broke off, bit his tongue. “Not Daddy. Reid.”

“Eed.” She put her head on his bare chest and he sighed. Gene was right. It was too late. Entirely too late. He cuddled the toddler closer, noticed her heavy diaper.

“Come on, little miss. Let’s get you clean and dry.” He grabbed a fresh diaper from the stack on the dresser and gently put the baby down. He slid off her pajama bottoms, unfastened the wet diaper, gave her bottom a quick pass with a baby wipe and had the new diaper in place before she had time to squirm.

He was refastening the snaps on her pajamas when he felt Kara’s presence. Wisely, she didn’t say anything and risk waking Nadia up further. He put Nadia back in her crib, handed her the blanket and watched her curl up with it against her cheek.

He quietly stepped back over the gate and shut the door. Kara was waiting in the hall.

“I thought you left.”

He stared at her, unable to decide if that was what she wanted…or simply expected. “I’m not him.”

Her eyes popped and she put up a hand. “Thank God for that.” She took a step closer, eyes skimming his torso and stopping at that V muscle she’d admired just a few minutes earlier. “I only meant you seemed pissed off when the phone rang so I just thought—”

“Kara, I’m sorry.” He cut her off, gripping her shoulders. She’d put her clothes back on and his fingers burned for her skin. “I didn’t know he’d been your only.”

“My only,” she repeated and huffed out a laugh. “I think of him in more negative terms. My
mistake
. My
biggest regret
.” She pulled away, sank to her favorite corner of the sofa. “You think I’m comparing you to him and okay, I’m sorry, I am. I can’t help it. It was never—” she broke off, bit her lip and her face turned red.

Why the hell that made him want to kiss her was completely beyond his comprehension.

“He never…oh, hell.”

He knew she was trying to say that the sex was better with him than with Steve. But that didn’t flatter him as much as it should have. For the first time since Erin’s death, he wanted more. He swallowed hard and asked the question whose answer terrified him. “What did he want?”

“He wants to see me. Us. He wants to see Nadia. Next weekend.”

He was wrong. There was another question whose answer terrified him more. “What did you say?”

“I almost said no. When he told me Elena sent him a text message the day Nadia was born, I nearly hung up on him.” She got up, paced restlessly. “He knew! The son of a bitch
knew
he was a father for the past year and a half and said nothing until now.”

“Sperm donor,” he corrected quietly. “Anything else has to be earned.” He waited a beat. “You didn’t tell me what you said. Are you gonna meet him?”

“Yeah. I have to.”

Ah, right. Chicks and closure. He nodded. “Okay. I’m coming with you.”

She shook her head. “Reid, you’ve done so much for me already. I can’t ask you—”

“You didn’t ask. I said I’m coming.” He blocked her path, folded her into his arms. “He hurt you once. He won’t get another chance.”

Against his bare chest, he felt her laugh. “Your job is to prepare me to separate from you—” she laughed when he snaked a hand under arm and tickled her.

“Yeah, yeah, very funny. I’m still coming.”

She pulled back, eyes aimed at his groin. “I think you’re overstating things a bit.”

He shifted his hands, grabbed hold of her hips and ground himself against her. Her lips curled into a naughty grin. “Whoa. That was fast.”

“Catch up.” He picked her up, tossed her to the sofa and covered her with his body. Slowly, he traced her jaw line down her neck with his lips, and pulled aside her top to find those beautiful breasts again.

“Reid.” She urged him on but he only shook his head and smiled against her breast.

“Listen to the rain, Kara.” He lifted her hands, stretched them over her head. “I’m gonna be a while.”

She opened her mouth to protest so he took offensive action and covered it with his own. When he felt her hands stop straining against his, only then did he pick up where he’d left off.

‡

“W
hoa,” Elena said.
It was Sunday morning and it was just the three of them for breakfast. Lucas was volunteering at the church soup kitchen and Reid was on duty. “Are you going through with it?”

Kara watched her daughter lick the syrup off a French toast stick. “I don’t want to. But I feel like I have to. She’s his daughter.”

Her sister snorted and sipped her hot chocolate. Elena’s taste buds had stopped maturing sometime around age ten. She despised coffee. Kara had no idea how she functioned. “So how’s Reid?” Elena asked with a little eyebrow wiggle.

Kara’s stomach did a long slow roll at the mere mention of his name. Her face burst into flame.

“Kara! You didn’t!”

Nadia said, “Eed!”

Elena pressed both hands to her gaping mouth. “Oh, my God, you did! And you didn’t tell me? So things are getting serious with you two?”

She wasn’t sure what things were between them. They had great sex. No, no. That wasn’t right.

They had mind-blowing, Earth-moving sex. Reid had spent the night Friday. And Saturday. Kara kept finding herself checking the clock, counting down the hours until the end of his shift.

“Kara, what’s wrong?”

She waved a hand. “I don’t know, Laney. I just…have a pretty bad track record where men are concerned.”

Elena snorted. “Sweetie, for you to have a track record, you to have, you know, an actual track. You were with one guy besides Reid and he turned out to be an ass.”

One guy. “Reid kind of freaked out over the one guy part.”

“What do you mean?” Elena angled her head.

“I think it scared him that he’s only the second guy I’ve ever… you know, been with.”

Elena gasped. “No way! You mean Steve Orland was your first?”

“Laney!” Mortified, Kara scanned the coffee shop, wondering if every person in the place just heard Elena’s announcement. Nadia knocked over her sippy cup and she dove under the table, grateful for the second or two of hiding time.

It was humiliating to ask sex advice from your younger sister. But if it meant keeping Reid Bennett, she’d endure any taunting her sister wanted to dish out. “I don’t want to mess this up, like I usually do.”

“Whoa.” Elena put up both hands. “What do you mean, usually do?”

“Things with Steve were great until I got pregnant.”

Again, Elena put up both hands. “Sorry, Kara, you didn’t get pregnant by yourself. And things weren’t great with Steve. Honestly, they never were.”

Stung, Kara blinked at her sister. “I was in love with him, Laney. I moved out of state to be with him. I gave him my virginity.”

But Elena shook her head. “Kara, I love you like a sister—”

Kara threw a straw at her. “Ha ha.”

“I love you better than anyone and you love me. We’ve known each other since I was born. You know all my secrets.”

“Now I do.” Kara covered Elena’s hand, gave it a squeeze. There was a time when that hadn’t been true. But Nadia’s birth and meeting Lucas changed everything for Elena…and for Kara, too.

“And I can tell you that without a doubt, you settled. Steve Orland was never a prize, honey. He wasn’t even runner up.”

That stung a bit. “Elena—”

“Just listen.” Elena put a piece of toast on Nadia’s tray. “You have this kind of warped and rosy image of the guy, but that’s not how things really were.”

Kara nodded. Reid said the same thing about her mother the other night. “Selective amnesia?”

“Bingo.” Elena nodded.

“Bee oh!” Nadia agreed.

“Good girl, Nadia!” Elena applauded. “You don’t seem to remember the tears you shed over him. He forgot to pick you up at the airport that time, remember? You got home, found him playing video games. He never wanted to go out with us, only his friends. You spent holidays apart because he only wanted to spend them with his family. And SFG? Remember that?”

Kara’s stomach fell. She had forgotten all of that. SFG—September’s Families Guild—had come to mean the world to her. But Steve told her it was an organization made of people who wanted to exploit September 11th victims, not help them. When she reminded him that she was one of the families the guild helped, he shrugged and said she was the exception. All she could remember is the determined set to his jaw when he left after she’d learned she was pregnant.